


The Painstaking Assignment

by notsoclose



Category: Dangan Ronpa, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Komahina - Freeform, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-12-03
Updated: 2014-12-12
Packaged: 2018-02-27 23:13:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,496
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2710163
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/notsoclose/pseuds/notsoclose
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hajime is assigned a group project where he has to be partnered up with Komaeda, Souda and Chiaki; things gradually start between Komaeda and Hajime.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Gang

**Tick tock. Tick tock.**  
The incredibly annoying clock echoed throughout the room as I dazed off into the window beside myself, I could see the orange tree's white blossoming flowers at the corner of my eye.

  
" Hajime." A stern voice spoke, grabbing my attention.

 " Have you been paying attention? You're supposed to pick your partners by today. You have your art project due by the end of this month."

 " R-right... " I replied under my breath.

A name comes to mind; ah yes, Mahiru! She had the highest grades out of everyone in this class, and I was well acquainted with her, so pairing up with her would be convenient, right? I turn my head towards her desk, and of course, she already chose her partners. I know I should of been expecting this, since I’m literally _the unluckiest guy on earth._ I'm also new to this class, I know literally no one except Mahiru. This is going to be a pain.

The loud and repetitive sound of the bell rings- finally.  
I hear the sound of screeching emitting from the chairs as the others get up.

W-well, there's always...Nevermind. It's come to my realization now that I’m left with only 3 people, so my options are obviously VERY limited. Uh...Some weirdo in an overly vibrant yellow...onesie? A quiet looking girl and--what the hell is up with that dude's hair- is he even a dude? Looks like this colorful group will be my partners. Well, I’m screwed. Without me realizing, that guy wearing that onesie-er…Jumpsuit, now that I look at it, is standing over my desk.

"O-oh...! um..." I yelped.

 "Yo," The pink haired guy bellowed. "Looks like we're gonna have to work together, eh? The name's Kazuichi Souda." He added in a voice that sounded rather scratchy.

 This guy seems like.... _a total slacker_. Well, looks like my chances of getting on the honor role this year just flew out the window. Thanks a lot kool-aid hair guy.

 "..Well?" Souda then said, snapping me out of my thoughts.

 "Ehh?? Oh um..."

  Dammit, I realized I haven’t even introduced myself to him.

 "Sorry...I'm Hajime Hinata. I hope we can get along." I was able to mutter that out, at least.

  "Well then, Hajime, mind introducing yourself to the others?"

 He points to the opposing side of the class, where I can see the other two standing.

 "Y-yeah."

I can't recall if I actually said that outloud or in my head, but whatever I guess. Beginning to make my way over to my partners, I already hear their unique voices speaking to...Me? Oh...yeah. _Me._ Kinda not used to that. We walk over to the other side of the class.

 "Hey." The short, cute looking girl with light pink hair called. "My name's Nanami Chiaki. Nice to meet you."

 "R-right, I'm Hinata Hajime." I even stuttered a bit. Smooth, Hinata, smooth.

 I shift my gaze to see- him. The pale, scrawny- almost bony looking kid. His white hair is literally going in all directions. Something definitely stands out about him. I can't tell what, but whatever.

"We haven't introduced ourselves, right? I'm Komaeda Nagito." The pale boy called;his words almost took me by surprise.

Komaeda's voice had a peculiar kind of rasp to it.

 "Oh, right. I'm Hinata Hajime." I replied. "God, I sound like a shoujo protagonist or something, so much for first impressions, huh?"

 Wait...Shit! Did I say that out loud? ..I-is he smiling?!

 " Well then; since we've all introduced ourselves, we should decide whose house to work in, right?" Komaeda says as he looks at Souda.

  I'm gonna pretend he didn't hear that last part I just said.

" Well...I uh, kinda have a roommate who would be pissed if we all came over, so...my place ain't really gonna work." Souda's voice almost cracked; he's clearly lying.

That's a pretty pitiful excuse if I'm to be honest, but I'll take his word for it. We can't go to Nanami's, since the majority of us are guys. I guess that only leaves him-

"Oh...I see, Souda. You can count me out, too; you see, my house is kind of... _Cluttered_ ," Komaeda, the white haired boy, chuckled a bit in slight remorse, following by placing his hand behind is head.

"That just leaves you, Hajime, " The pale boy concluded.

And with that, they're all giving me dependent glares. Great.

" I! ...I got nothing," I sigh.

 Kool-aid hair and Komaeda giggle a bit at my response, Nanami quietly staring at us.

" It's settled! Hajimes place it is!" Souda exclaimed."

 " Sooooo...Where's it at?" He questioned in addition.

 "That can wait, Kazuichi." retorted Nanami.

  " I think we should discuss more tomorrow after class, before doing anything else." Komaeda spoke.

 " I agree" Nanami adds.

 " O-oh..If you wanna do it that way, then fine.. But lets at least exchange numbers, ya' know?" Souda mumbles.

 Honestly, that sounds like an excuse just to get Chiaki's number if you ask me; but whatever works.We all write down our numbers and hand it out to each other before hearing words that sounded as if they were being cried out from a dying walrus-for lack of better comparison.

"Guys, wait!!! I accidentally wrote mine down on my assignment sheet! Give it back!" Souda cries out.

 Kazuichi continued wailing as a godawful expression appeared on his face. Huh, I was right about this guy; He really is a total dunce--wait...are those...tears streaming down his face right now?! Everyone including myself can't help but laugh at the sight Souda just offered them; even the kids who hadn't left yet laughed a bit-though it be not loud.

" S-stop laughing alright!? It seriously ain't funny! And give me back my homework already!!" He declares again, making everyone chuckle even more.

 Is this guy the new class clown or something? Apparently Komaeda was holding previously mentioned class clown's assignment and stormed out of the class room with it in his hand--oh boy. As soon as I'm done practically crying , I see Souda jolt after the scrawny boy, tears still flowing down his face as he yells at Komaeda to "Get back here!".

This...Might actually end up being kind of fun.


	2. Thanks, Bus Driver

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rain. That's all.

Impatiently waiting for the bell to ring, I gaze out the window beside me, noticing the sun's disappeared from sight; It's also become quite cloudy now. It's been a day since I met that colorful group of three, Nanami- a quiet and possibly timid girl, Kazuichi- the complete dunce, and Komaeda- the easygoing kind of guy. We all planned to meet by the orange trees outside school today. I can't believe I'm actually looking forward to this...

The loud, high pitched sound of the bell goes off as the other students get up.

I guess it's time to meet up with the others. I head over to our meeting place and see I'm the first one there. What's taking everyone?

As soon as I think that to myself, there's...probably the most interesting guy of our little group; Komaeda. I wave to him and he returns the favor. He looks around for a few seconds, scanning the area.

"Ah, I see we're the only one's here." Komaeda stated." I think we should wait for the others."

 "Yeah," I reply.

We both lean against the tree, taking in the atmosphere; it's gotten cloudier than before, and it appears it's going to rain soon. I really need the others to get here quickly, because I swear to god if I'm left here with him for any longer it's going to get awkward.

I shift my head towards Komaeda. Seeing he's opening his mouth to say something, and I tense up a bit; I really don't know how to talk to this guy. He begins to stare at me with a serious look on his face.

"..Hinata-kun, would yo-"

"Yo guys!" Souda interrupts.

I'm actually kind of curious to know what Komaeda was trying to say...But, maybe I should be thanking Kazuichi, in all honesty.  
Nanami soon follows behind Kazuichi running towards me. Souda...doesn't look like he's going to stop running this rapidly anytime soon...He skyrocketed straight past us and- wait...! The only thing back there is a brick wall!

* **SLAM** *

Well then.

"I'm okay! I'm totally fine!" Souda calls at a distance, spluttering every word.

Is he...Really okay? Nanami strodes off to help him up. I try to make out what they're saying back there.

 "Kazuichi, let me help you up."

 "I can get up on my own, I don't need no girl helping m- OW, BE GENTLE!"

She...Just let him stumble back onto the ground. Ouch. Nanami then steps back over to me and Komaeda.

"Hey, doesn't it look like it's going to rain soon?"

"Y-yeah it does, we should probably head over to my house, and we could discuss there..?" I suggested.

"Sounds good to me!" Komaeda adds.

Kazuichi slowly limped over to join the conversation.

"Y-yeah...That s-sounds like a good idea to me..." Souda whimpered; trying to hold in his tears.

We walk over to the main street and wait for a bus, the rain soaking us all in the mean time. Why did _none_ of us bring an umbrella? We all stand there like idiots. Idiots who forgot their umbrellas. All four of them. Incredible. After a what seemed like a neverending ten minutes of standing silently, the bus was finally in sight. As it comes closer, we all get splashed with water. Thanks, driver.

And of course, it's literally jam-packed. Komaeda and I manage to find two seats, while Nanami and Souda find other seats quite far from us. I glance at Nanami, whose taken out her PS Vita and plays some sort of...Trigger Happy Detective game? I guess I won't have to worry about her anytime soon. Souda, on the otherhand, is busy admiring the interior of the bus; it's as if he's never been on one before. Pretty sure I even spotted him explaining how the whole thing works to some old lady. I feel bad for her...

I turn my head to see him, Komaeda, staring out the window. Now that I think about it, we haven't really talked as much as I have with the others.

  
"Komaeda.."

"Hm..?" He turns his head towards me, looking at me with a curious expression. "What is it, Hinata-kun?"

Damn it! I didn't mean to start a conversation. Way to go, Hajime. I can't just say I didn't mean to call his name, either...

"N-n...Nice weather w-w-we're having...?" (Even I have to admit, that coverup was pathetic...)

His pale green eyes lit up.

"I actually kind of enjoy this kind of weather myself!" Komaeda replies, "The city looks beautiful in rain!"

 He looks so excited- maybe even passionate. Did I say something I shouldn't of? Oh- that reminds me.

"...Earlier, when we were waiting for the others, you wanted to tell me someth-"

* **SCREECH** *

T-the bus took an abrupt stop. Before I even knew what was happening, I realize I`ve fallen onto his lap...

"Hajime? A-are you alright!?" His face all flustered.

 I quickly get up before anyone else notices us.

I take another quick glance at the pale boy and notice his face is as red as a tomato, looking in the opposite direction of me.

"S-sorry.." I falter, sounding like a complete moron.

"I-I-it's alright! Y-you don't have to apologize.I-I should be the one apologizing, someone as unworthy as me should of never decided to sit next to you in the first place!" He says, sounding like complete moron aswell. "R-really! It's fine...! I-it was pretty much my fault anyways.."

***SCREECH***

This is our stop, thank god. It was already akward enough between me and him. Nanami, Souda, me and Komaeda approach the bus door, and we scurry into my apartment, trying to avoid the rain. We reach room 102, and I open the door.

"Sorry, it's not really all that great.." I commented.

"No worries! 'Beats standin' in the rain all day; that's for sure," "It's fine!," and "Mhm~" everyone reassures me, so I sigh in relief. Whew.

As soon as I thought my worries were over, the storm amplifies; thunder echoed throughout my apartment room. Of course...

"That storm sure don't seem like it's gonna lighten up any time soon..." Souda states; thanks, Captain Obvious.

 "If the weather goes on like this, we're probably going to have to sleepover at Hinata-kun's apartment" Komaeda points out.

"Then I guess you can all 'make yourselves at home'," I chuckle a bit ironically. "This place isn't the most comfortable, but it'll have to do."  
I wasn't lying; my apartment IS pretty shabby. Most of the rooms are small and cramped, and--  
Shit! I just realized...

"H-hey...Guys...W-we might have a bit of a problem," I stutter in a more-than-likely worried tone.

 I watch as everyone turns their gaze towards me with curious faces, waiting for me to elaborate.

"Well...You see, my apartment kind of only has...Two beds..." I explain.

"Two beds, eh? It's fine, me and Nanami could shar-" Souda gives Nanami's disturbed expression a quick look. "...H-hey! I-It was a joke 'aight? Don't look at me like that!"

"I'm sure we can figure something out Hinata-kun." Nanami reasures me.

  
I can already tell this is going to be a _long_ night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 'Rain can put you in some compromising poses' - hajime hinata probably


	3. Familiar Faces

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Upon noticing they needed more supplies for the project, Komaeda and Hajime are sent to the store. Little did they know that they would end up meeting "her".

My apartment room was a somewhat decent size, although most of the rooms were a bit tight and/or cramped. One thing's for sure though, it was a very clean space. Although, my room, the place me and my partners were staying in for the time being, said completely otherwise. There are many empty orange juice bottles scattered across the floor and on my desk. I really should have cleaned up in here, it stinches of rotten oranges. I hope they don't notice.  
Actually...How could they not notice this!? It seriously stinks- even I'm breathing through my mouth! Y-yeah, I really need to do something about this, and fast. I need to figure out a way to clean up without them realizing.

"I'll be right back, guys. Just gonna...check on something."

I run out of there like a lion chasing after its dinner. I run into the bathroom, frantically open all of my cabinets, probably making a lot of noise- but it doesn't matter. I skim through all the items --ah yes, there's what I'm looking for! The air freshener, of course...  
Wait.  
Orange scent...?  
You...Gotta be kidding me...Is this all I have!? This isn't going to help at all! It might make things WORSE!  
I carefully scan all the items in my bathroom's cabinet; oblivion is inevitable...I let it sink in. All I have is this stupid orange scented air freshener...

Well, it's got to smell better than /rotten/ oranges at least, right? Maybe I should try this out. I guess it can't hurt.

I dashed out of my bathroom, trying to get back into my bedroom as soon as I can. But then I soon realize that a guy who just said he "went to check on something", made a ton of noise in the bathroom, and comes back into the room like a lightning bolt wouldn't be the best way to go about things. I slow down my pace right before I enter the room, wiping off my sweat and trying to act normal.

"We should-" I get cut off.

The thunder grew increasingly louder and echoed throughout the entire apartment building. To my relief, Kazuichi and Nanami were bickering over who gets the bed, while Komaeda attempted to reason with them. Kazuichi seems REALLY persistent on sharing a bed with Nanami; not that that's a surprise or anything. So much for "just joking", huh?

"C-c-come on, can't we j-just figure somethin' out already and g-get on with it!?" He insisted fearfully, his teeth clattering like a skeleton.

It's apparent that he's shivering, although I don't think it's because of Nanami's cold stares.

"Kazuichi, are you...Okay, over there?" I ask him, trying to sound as casual as possible.

"W-well, yeah! W-why wouldn't I be? Heheh..." He's a horrible liar.

Honestly, how could he get so scared during the 3 minutes I left? What happened while I was gone? Wow. You go to the bathroom to get some air freshener and look at what happens.

Another bright light flashes, followed by the startling crackling sound of thunder. Souda bounced up and fell flat on the floor, curling up in a ball like a kitten. Oh, so that's why.

"Anyways," I inserted sheepishly, focusing away from Souda. "I should probably show you guys around this place." I face Nanami and Komaeda, secretly hoping I could sneak off and clean up my mess while they're distracted.

"Nevermind that," Nanami interrupts. "We should start deciding on what kind of project we'll do, right?"

My plan was cruelly thwarted by Nanami...

"Perhaps.. a mosaic?" The white haired boy ruminated with his hand on his chin.

"Mosaic..?" Nanami tilts her head.

"I think a mosaic is a piece of art created with different peices of colored glass or stone or something." I answer, hoping I'm not horribly wrong; that'd be embarrassing...

"That's exactly what it is!" Komaeda reassures me. Thank God I didn't go through middle school all over again just there. Damn that Tanaka kid, always showing me up. Wonder what happened to that guy?

"Sounds good." Nanami agrees, progressing over to me. "Do you have paper, or a canvas, or something like that we can work with?"

"I think canvases work best for mosaics.." Komaeda mumbles diffidently. For someone who suggested the idea in the first place, he definitely doesn't seem to have much more knowledge about this than the rest of us.

"W-well-" I'm interrupted by _someone._

Souda streaks towards us from nowhere with my laptop in his hands, disrupting my train of thought. W-where the hell did he find that? More improtantly, where the hell did he even go? Wasn't he trying to get under my bed? Whatever, I can ponder that later- he's going to crash into my wall and break my laptop if I don't stop him!

"S-Souda, slow down! You're gonna drop it if you keep it up! Remember what happened near the orange trees earlier?" I shout at him accusingly, waving my arms at him to stop.

The bubblegum haired dunce slows down his pace and props down next to me; crossing his legs. Nanami and Komaeda sit around us, and we're all gathered.

"We could just look it up online, can't we?" Souda points out, instructing us to look at the laptop screen.

"Souda...Where did you go earlier? How did you even know we were doing a mosaic?" I interrogate him, trying to sound like one of those guys who wear sunglasses on detective shows.

"T-that's not important, alright!? I'm helping you out! Kazuichi just came to save the day, and you're questioning him! What kinda guy questions a superhero!?"

"The type of person who is smart enough to realize you're only a superhero in your dreams," Nanami- whom I originally saw as a cute and quiet girl- retorted. Burned."Why does everyone always pick on Kazuichi, huh..." He sounds so melodramatic, I can't tell if he's being serious or not.

"We should probably look stuff up about mosaics, you know.." I acknowledge the fact that none of us probably know anything about mosaics and the project is due not that long from now. 

  
~~~~~~ 

  
"Okay," Nanami begins, rolling up her sleeves. The quiet or not-so-much girl grabs her sketchbook and pencil, sketching wrecklessly for an overall idea. "I never got an answer from you earlier thanks to Kazuichi-san," Giving Souda a sharp glare. "Do you have a canvas we could all work with, Hinata-kun?"

"Oh! Um...No, but the convenience store nearby probably does. We could get one from there." I recall; it never really occured to me that I wouldn't already have the supplies needed with me.

"I don't think all of us should go at once, given the weather and all." Komaeda points out followed by a muffled sigh.

"You and Hinata-kun could go," Nanami suggests. "Me and Kazuichi-san could stay here and work out the details of the project. Does that sound good?"

Me and him alone, together? Again? Last time that didn't really go so well... That's a memory I'd rather suppress, though I doubt I'll actually be able to.

"Sounds good!" Komaeda gets up in a fast motion, seeming rather giddy over the decision that was made. Looks like we're doing this again...

"Oh, as long as that's okay with you, Hinata-kun," He shifts his head towards me with an expectant expression.

"E-eh? Oh; it's no problem, really..." That was a blatant lie, and I'm really hoping he didn't see through it.

I reluctantly head over towards the door and we grab our umbrella-

Oh no......  
OH no......

I already knew this was a bad idea from the getgo, but we haven't even left the apartment and it's already getting bad for me.

"Hinata-kun..?" Komaeda asks worriedly.

So. Turns out we only have one umbrella, when there's two of us. Great! Fantastic! Couldn't be a better day to be alive!

"Um...You don't see it, do you...?" I question with, most likely, an incredibly disturbed expression pasted on my face. I can't blame myself.

He takes another look at what was infront of us, and I guess that's when it hit him.

"O-oh! I-I see...!" He squeaked, light pink across his face; reverting his gaze to the side.

The sudden high pitch that emitted from Komaeda apparently caught Kazuichi and Nanami's attention, as I spotted them turning their heads toward us in confusion.

"What's the holdup?" The annoying one inquired. Wouldn't you like to know...

"N-no problem! We'll just be on our way..." My partner answered for me. Thanks.

With that, we leave the room, taking the one umbrella. I try my best not to look at his face, knowing I'd blush even more if I did. Komaeda is taking in the surrounding, looking left and right while the raindrops were heavily bouncing off of our umbrella-silencing any outside noises. We traverse on the sidewalk, attempting to avoid getting splashed with water by oncoming vehicles. We learned our lesson after Mr. Bus Driver from earlier decided to create a waterfall around us, AND stop the bus so abruptly that I ended up...Nevermind. I shutter at the thought; I never want to think about that again. Let's not do that, please.

When we're near arrived at the convenience store, Komaeda attempts to strike up a conversation.

"Hinata-kun, what do you think about Nanami-san and Kazuichi-san?" He interrogated me almost...Sinisterly, and with a blank face holding little to no emotion.

"Huh? What do I think about them?" I need to make sure I heard that right. It's as if he's just trying to start a conversation.

"Mhm~! What do you think about them?" He repeated himself in a sing-songy voice.

"W-well...Kazuichi's...You know...And Nanami's nice, I think?" I seriously had no idea how to answer that. What, was I supposed to say "I think Kazuichi fell face first from hell and Nanami's god's favorite angel"? Honestly, what was he trying to get at??

"Oh, is that so.." He faltered, partially drooping his head to the ground being splashed with raindrops.

Did I say something I wasn't supposed to? He seems really disappointed. That was kind of weird... We reach the store entrance in awkward silence. We take in it's interior; there are tons of aisles stocked with various items under the some bright and some flickering lights. It's been a while since I came here, but if I can recall, none of the ailes were labeled. I stop for a moment to check if this still applied.

Yep. Still completely disorganized.

I scan the area for the nearest employee, and I catch sight of a short haired girl in bright red uniform; she seems to be organizing one of the shelves. I try to make out what's written on her ID tag; Mukuro Ikusaba. I stride over to her while Komaeda follows me from behind.

"Uhm, excuse me," I try to grab her attention.

The pale, black haired girl with freckles dotted over her face upon closer expection, turns towards me.

"How may I help you..?" She says, in a rather bored kind of voice. I don't think she meant it, but she was giving me an aggravated and harsh glare; I question myself if I said something wrong again.

"D-do you happen to know where the art aisle would be?" I inquire her, my voice cracking at the end.

She points to my right and immediately returns to organizing the shelves, not saying another word. I check the area she was pointing towards to find a vibrant aisle full of various colors; yep, that looks like it's probably what we're looking for. Komaeda and I booked it out of the aisle the melancholy girl was in and made off to the polychromatic direction.

"Do you come to this store often, Hinata-kun?" Komaeda questions inquisitively.

"Not really, that's why I had to ask that girl where we were supposed to go," I respond to him wryly. Upon finishing my response, we've arrived at the aisle we were looking for.

"Well, who would've thought! They have exactly what we need! This is pretty fortunate," Komaeda declared with enthusiasm, taking steps towards a fairly large canvas.

"Looks good. We should get going now," I announce, taking the sizeable canvas from the shelf.

Man, it's a lot heavier than I had first thought. Komaeda walks up to me, insisting to help me with it, but I shake my head in response. I turn around to exit the aisle, but I'm interrupted by somethi- er, someone.

" _Hellooo_ , boys~!" A recognizable girl skips towards us with a huge grin.

Long, pinkish-blonde twintails, sharp blue eyes, porcelaine skin; she definitely stood out amongst us all. Enoshima Junko. She was "Miss Popular" in school, given she was...A total rolemodel for girls, I guess? I'm clueless as to why someone like her would approach us.

At the corner of my eye, it's obvious Komaeda's expression suddenly changed from one of joy and upbeatness to one of disgust and passiveness.

"Ohh! Long time no see Nagito-chan!" The idol-like girl sang, skipping closer to Komaeda's face.

Komaeda steps back from her and reverts his gaze rather sharply; walking towards me.

"Hinata-kun, we should go." He bellowed to me condescendingly with a dead serious look on his face and slipping past me.

"Awwh~! That's too bad.." The strawberry-blonde girl confessed disappointedly, crossing her arms and adjusting her gaze to the side. "I was hoping I could mess with him a lot more! Hehe~!!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Hey Teruteru! I just tried your cooking; now I see why McDonald's fired you!" - maya's brother 2k14
> 
>  
> 
> also the tension between komaeda and hinata is incredible


End file.
